Pogge says he knew very little about MSU Denver a year ago. “Everything I’ve learned has been new. I was surprised by the size. It’s not a community college, it’s a full-fledged university.”

A couple of issues Pogge is wrestling with now are funding and Internet-based education. “With government cutting back, higher education will definitely get hit again, so the school will need to look at how private schools raise money. And with Internet delivery, there needs to be some balance to get lectures out to the masses and maintain the interactivity of actual classes.”

For the remainder of his term, Pogge hopes to see more public-private partnerships like those between MSU Denver and the business community that made the Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center a reality.

“That’s a good avenue for a real education students can use right out of college,” he says.